Topic Review
PET Biomarkers in Mitochondrial Dysfunction
There is a need to disentangle the etiological puzzle of age-related neurodegenerative diseases, whose clinical phenotypes arise from known, and as yet unknown, pathways that can act distinctly or in concert. Enhanced sub-phenotyping and the identification of in vivo biomarker-driven signature profiles could improve the stratification of patients into clinical trials and, potentially, help to drive the treatment landscape towards the precision medicine paradigm. The rapidly growing field of neuroimaging offers valuable tools to investigate disease pathophysiology and molecular pathways in humans, with the potential to capture the whole disease course starting from preclinical stages. Positron emission tomography (PET) combines the advantages of a versatile imaging technique with the ability to quantify, to nanomolar sensitivity, molecular targets in vivo. There is an increasing body of literature implicating dysfunction of mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum dynamics, energy metabolism and oxidative stress within the molecular paradigm of age-related neurodegenerative diseases. The development of novel PET radioligands enables the in vivo investigation of mitochondrial and ER dysfunction in age-related neurodegenerative diseases.
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  • 21 Feb 2021
Topic Review
Minerals’ Role in Human Nutrition
Micronutrients such as selenium, fluoride, zinc, iron, and manganese are minerals that are crucial for many body homeostatic processes supplied at low levels. The importance of these micronutrients starts early in the human life cycle and continues across its different stages.
  • 1.7K
  • 02 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Swyer Syndrome
Swyer syndrome is a condition that affects sexual development. Sexual development is usually determined by an individual's chromosomes; however, in Swyer syndrome, sexual development does not match the affected individual's chromosomal makeup.  
  • 1.7K
  • 23 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Balancing Immune System to Treat Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other autoimmune inflammatory diseases are examples of imbalances within the immune system (disrupted homeostasis) that arise from the effects of an accumulation of environmental and habitual insults over a lifetime, combined with genetic predispositions. The Ligand Epitope Antigen Presentation System (LEAPS) therapies are capable of inhibiting ongoing disease progression in animal models. Whereas DMARDs ablate or inhibit specific proinflammatory cytokines or cells and JAK inhibitors (jakinibs) inhibit the receptor activation cascade for expression of proinflammatory cytokines, the LEAPS therapeutic vaccines specifically modulate the ongoing antigen-specific, disease-driving, proinflammatory T memory cell responses. This decreases disease presentation and changes the cytokine conversation to decrease the expression of inflammatory cytokines while increasing the expression of regulatory cytokines. 
  • 1.7K
  • 09 May 2022
Topic Review
Antimicrobial Blue Light
Blue light primarily exhibits antimicrobial activity through the activation of endogenous photosensitizers, which leads to the formation of reactive oxygen species that attack components of bacterial cells, such as cell wall, cell membrane and genome. Current data show that blue light is innocuous on the skin, but may inflict photo-damage to the eyes. While complete resistance to blue light has not been reported, isolated evidence suggests that bacterial tolerance to blue light may occur over time, especially through gene mutations, although at a slower rate than antibiotic resistance. Future studies can aim at characterizing the amount and type of intracellular photosensitizers across bacterial species and at assessing the oxygen-independent mechanism of blue light.
  • 1.7K
  • 11 Jan 2021
Topic Review
Yarrowia lipolytica
After having drawn some industrialists’ attention as early as the 1950s, the non-conventional oleaginous yeast Yarrowia lipolytica has been recognized since several decades, as a powerful host for heterologous protein expression, secretion and surface display. The development of sequencing and genetic engineering tools, combined with an increasing knowledge of its metabolism, have then facilitated the complex engineering of the metabolic pathways of this yeast for various applications. Since nearly two decades, numerous laboratories throughout the world have chosen Y. lipolytica as a chassis for designing microbial cell factories. White biotechnology applications of this yeast include notably single cell oil production, whole cell bioconversion and upgrading of industrial wastes. 
  • 1.7K
  • 19 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Japanese River Otter
The Japanese river otter (Japanese: ニホンカワウソ(日本川獺 ー, Hepburn: Nihon-kawauso) (Lutra lutra whiteleyi) is an extinct variety of otter formerly widespread in Japan. Dating back to the 1880s, it was even seen in Tokyo. The population suddenly shrank in the 1930s, and the mammal nearly vanished. Since then, it has only been spotted several times, in 1964 in the Seto Inland Sea, and in the Uwa Sea in 1972 and 1973. The last official sighting was in the southern part of Kōchi Prefecture in 1979, when it was photographed in the mouth of the Shinjo River in Susaki. It was subsequently classified as a "Critically Endangered" species on the Japanese Red List. On August 28, 2012, the Japanese river otter was officially declared extinct by the Ministry of the Environment. It is the official animal symbol of Ehime Prefecture. In February 2017, a wild otter was caught on camera on Tsushima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture. However, it is not known whether the observed otter was a Japanese river otter.
  • 1.7K
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Coypu
The coypu (from spa coipú, from arn koypu; Myocastor coypus), also known as the nutria, is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent. Classified for a long time as the only member of the family Myocastoridae, Myocastor is now included within Echimyidae, the family of the spiny rats. The coypu lives in burrows alongside stretches of water, and feeds on river plant stems. Originally native to subtropical and temperate South America, it has since been introduced to North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, primarily by fur farmers. Although it is still hunted and trapped for its fur in some regions, its destructive burrowing and feeding habits often bring it into conflict with humans, and it is considered an invasive species.
  • 1.7K
  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
RNA-Targeting CRISPR–Cas Systems
Many CRISPR–Cas systems have been used as a backbone for the development of potent research tools, with Cas9 being the most widespread. While most of the utilized systems are DNA-targeting, recently more and more attention is being gained by those that target RNA. Their ability to specifically recognize a given RNA sequence in an easily programmable way makes them ideal candidates for developing new research tools. 
  • 1.7K
  • 23 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Stereotype Embodiment Theory
Stereotype embodiment theory (SET) is a theoretical model first posited by psychologist Becca Levy to explain the process by which age stereotypes influence the health of older adults. There are multiple well-documented effects of age stereotypes on a number of cognitive and physical outcomes (including memory, cardiovascular reactivity, and longevity). SET explains these findings according to a three-step process: Underlying these three steps are SET's four main theoretical premises. According to Levy (2009): "The theory has four components: The stereotypes (a) become internalized across the lifespan, (b) can operate unconsciously, (c) gain salience from self-relevance, and (d) utilize multiple pathways." Although this theory was developed to explain the operation of age stereotypes across the lifespan, it may also explain how other types of self-stereotypes operate, such as race stereotypes among African Americans and gender stereotypes among women.
  • 1.7K
  • 02 Nov 2022
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